Dreams
by Trainmaster64
Summary: Thomas has been having nightmares, and is taking his troubles out on the other engines. Gordon, however, decides that things have gone far enough, and exacts revenge upon Thomas, with the help of an unlikely ally.


Thomas was looking deeply into Rosie's eyes, his love and desire for her etched in every inch of his face, his figure, his very being. He was utterly in love, and she was in love with him. Nothing else mattered. "Have I ever told you how cute you look?"

"Yes," Rosie giggled in her cute yet seductive way, "but tell me again, Thomas."

"You are so cute and pretty, and utterly gorgeous. I love you, Rosie."

"Come to me, Thomas, come to me," Rosie whispered, her voice passionate and her eyes bright.

Her plea was met, as Thomas moved closer and began to kiss her passionately, his lips soft on hers and his actions clear. His tongue gently crested over her lips, which parted immediately; her own tongue darted out first and embraced the other softly and delicately. Thomas felt his boiler bubble and his firebox flare.

Then, without warning, Rosie began to smirk viciously, her features shifting form as Thomas watched. He was repulsed and attracted at the same time, as he witnessed her body lengthen and stretch into a squared-off yet rounded form. Her funned disappeared, her six wheels became two sets of four, and her eyes glinted with a dangerous yet somehow irresistible dark gleam. The lavender paintwork was colored ochre, the steam disappeared…

"Come to me, Thomas, come to me," Diesel 10 murmured, his voice deep and passionate, and his wish was granted immediately. The two embraced again, trapped together in a mad flurry of passion. His lips were coarse and rough, his tongue caressing his with dedication and passion. As Thomas looked up briefly, he saw the diesel's eyes had glossed over with a red glint of triumph and lust…

Thomas awoke with a start, screaming his shock and horror into the black night. It took him a moment to realize that he had merely been dreaming, and was in fact safely in his shed with Rosie at Ffarquhar. The night sky was peaceful and content, to speak nothing of the panic that had ensnared Thomas a few moments previously.

Rosie was wide awake and, after having calmed down herself, was very concerned about her friend and love. The two had been together for several months now – it was growing close to a year's time, as a matter of fact; less than two months away – and had been sharing a shed for a while. Never had she heard Thomas like this before, and she was truly worried.

"Thomas, what's wrong? What happened?"

Thomas looked utterly spooked, and jumped at Rosie's voice. "B-b-bad dream, Rosie. V-very bad d-dream."

"But Thomas, my love, what–"

"DON'T SAY THAT WORD!" Thomas had a brief flare of panic arise again, to be quickly doused with intense guilt and shame as he saw Rosie's face fill with hurt emotions. "I'm sorry, Rosie. I didn't mean that. I had the worst dream, and in it you… changed."

Rosie was still very hurt and confused. "How did I change, then?"

"You became… you became… Diesel 10." The last words were little more than a whisper, his face already full of shame and anguish.

Rosie shuddered; she, like the other steam engines on Sodor, knew of Diesel 10 very well and was immediately more understanding towards Thomas. Now she knew why Thomas had rebuffed her love as he did. She only wished she could help.

"I'm so sorry, Rosie. I didn't mean what I said; not a word. I just couldn't deal with that. Please forgive me."

"Of course, Thomas; I know you care too much about me to want to hurt me like that. I won't leave your side, though, no matter what you say. You're stuck with me for the long haul," Rosie giggled. "Try to go to sleep again, Thomas, and we can talk more in the morning."

Thomas was especially grateful for Rosie's seemingly unlimited patience towards him – he would make it up to her as soon as he could. However, he didn't return to his sleep that evening – the image of Diesel 10 burned in his memory despite his attempts to remove it, and he simply did not dare to fall asleep again, for fear that his true love sleeping peacefully beside him would suddenly transform into that terrible beast once again.

* * *

><p>"Thomas, you look terrible."<p>

The blue tank engine groaned wearily as he shunted a pair of vans into the sidings. He had had little sleep for the past few days, owing to his nightmarish vision from a few days ago, and was paying for it dearly. Unfortunately, his temper was also suffering as a result – Thomas was very irritable and moody, which was not pleasant for any of the other engines who had to be near him.

"Thanks, Gordon. I really needed to hear that."

"Well, well, little Thomas. Is your little friend Rosie keeping you awake until all hours?" Gordon winked exaggeratedly.

"It's none of your business, Gordon," Thomas answered tersely. "Your coaches will be ready soon enough, so go get ready for the Express and let me do my work."

Gordon was very surprised. "There's no need to be so irritable, Thomas. I only meant–"

"I know what you meant, Gordon. For your information, everything is perfectly fine between me and Rosie. Not everything concerns you, so keep your funnel on your oversized boiler and out of others' business. Now let me be, you galloping sausage."

And Thomas puffed crossly away, not noticing or caring that Gordon had become speechless, his face turning redder with each passing moment.

* * *

><p>Gordon was returning to Tidmouth Sheds later that day, fuming. The nerve of Thomas, speaking to him like that… The big blue engine was furious, to say the least. From what he had heard from some of the other engines, Thomas' attitude towards them had also been somewhat less than kind, leaving all of them in no doubt that Thomas was becoming a big nuisance.<p>

So lost in thought was Gordon that he very nearly ignored his red signal, forcing him to brake hard and avoid any danger. Gordon's brakes squealed viciously as he stopped very shortly.

Rosie was sitting on the next line, waiting for her road to open up. She was eyeing Gordon with a bit of worry. "Are you all right, Gordon?"

"Yes, Rosie," Gordon groaned; he didn't like to have the smaller engines fussing over him like this. "I wasn't paying attention to the signal; I was otherwise distracted. We important engines tend to focus on the big picture, and not the smaller details."

"Yes, Gordon, I see," Rosie giggled. "You just need us smaller engines to look after the small details to keep you from ruining the 'big picture.'"

Gordon was incensed. "First Thomas, and now you! Why are all the tank engines out to get me?"

"Thomas has been rough on you, too?" Rosie asked, looking concerned. "He's been very out of sorts lately, and I don't like it one bit. We know he's not like this normally; he's usually sweet and kind, and generous and decent and–"

"All right, little Rosie, I don't need to hear everything good about him," Gordon interrupted smoothly.

Rosie looked as if she were steeling herself to speak, before: "Thomas had had a… very bad dream… a few nights ago. That's probably why he isn't sleeping as much, and–"

"–thus, his uncouth nature. Of course, now I understand. What I don't understand is how he feels he can get away with treating us like this – especially me!"

The lavender tank engine now looked slightly more confident as she spoke up. "I think Thomas needs to learn a lesson, Gordon. He needs to see how he's become and why his dream was so silly. After all, dreaming about making out with Diesel 10 is completely–"

"WHAT?" Gordon was absolutely appalled, and now looking a shade paler than he had before. Rosie was terrified at what she had said, blushing furiously at her loose tongue.

"Please don't tell anyone, Gordon, please oh please keep this quiet – Thomas doesn't need to hear that I said anything. He trusts me and loves me. If he ever found out… please just keep this quiet."

Gordon stayed silent, still trying to digest this bit of news. Rosie scurried away to finish her work, shamefaced and worried, but he paid her no mind; the wheels in his mind had begun to turn after he had gotten over his initial shock and disgust.

Once upon a simpler time, Thomas had been cheeky and disrespectful to Gordon, and the big engine had come up with a plan to make him pay dearly for his grievous error. While Gordon couldn't get away with such a plan again, he had not lost his cunning and cleverness with his age – Rosie's statements had provided him with the perfect plan for revenge that would, surely, cut down this disrespect once and for all.

* * *

><p>Gordon was shaking as he passed through the scrap heaps. Very few engines, steam or diesel, enjoyed coming here – the yards were full of scrapped comrades on both sides, which was not a sight anyone particularly favored. Gordon himself had not been here in years, if ever; he couldn't remember to be sure.<p>

The engine he was searching for stood alone in the nearest siding, busy maneuvering the scrap metal into place with his large grabber mechanism. Diesel 10, the meanest diesel on Sodor, was in charge of the scrap yards on Sodor – a position he particularly enjoyed. He was able to use his claw to pick up pieces of metal and load them into the waiting trucks, to be transported to the nearby smelters yard for melting into raw metal.

Of course, the engines themselves were well aware that Diesel 10 could use his claw for intimidation and fearsome purposes – many of them, Gordon included, had been threatened several times by the intimidating figure. Once, he had nearly succeeded in destroying James – the others had learned very quickly afterwards to stay as far away from him as was possible.

Gordon, however, knew he needed to approach with extreme caution to avoid such a fate from befalling himself. As he approached Diesel 10 he stopped suddenly – the diesel had sensed his presence.

"Identify yourself or be scrapped. You are within my danger zone."

Gordon glanced down and noticed that he had indeed passed the orange cones that signaled the limits of the diesel's claw extension. "Gordon the Big Blue Engine. I need a word with you, if you don't mi-"

"Get out. I do not socialize with steam locomotives such as you. You disgust me."

But Gordon knew he couldn't leave without the help of the menacing figure. "But, surely you-"

"Leave, now. I will scrap you immediately otherwise."

"I need your help to get back at-"

The diesel's claw had swung round as the menacing diesel reversed towards him. "You are really as idiotic and senseless as you look. Do you expect a sophisticated machine such as me to fraternize with such foul and loathsome beings such as yourself? I abhor the idea of steam traction – it fills me with disgust. I destroy steam engines, to ensure the continued rise of the diesel locomotive on Sodor and the world! Tell me why I should not eliminate you immediately!" The diesel's eloquence underlay his viciousness that hid beneath – he was much more refined than he had been in prior years, but was still very cruel and evil towards the steam engines. Even the diesels were intimidated by him at the best of times.

Gordon, therefore, was to be commended for staying and speaking frankly. "I don't want to speak to you or even see you either, and believe me when I say I wouldn't bother if I absolutely didn't need to. You're the only one that can help me, though. Please hear me out at least."

The diesel glared at him with his cold eyes for a few moments, before settling down somewhat – his claw was moved to a slightly less threatening position, which Gordon took to be a sign to continue speaking. Ten minutes later, Diesel 10 had heard everything and was thinking to himself.

"Why," he asked suddenly, "should I assist you in this nefarious scheme? I loathe your kind. You speak of an alliance between foes forever pitted against one another. Besides, what you suggest would be nothing short of unnatural and disgusting. It is a foul idea, which makes me want to vomit."

"Wouldn't it be worth it to see the look on Thomas' face, though?" Gordon asked. "You hate him more than anyone – this would be the perfect opportunity to scare him straight, and give yourself the satisfaction of making the little runt squirm." Gordon thought he had rather impressed Diesel 10 with this argument.

Diesel 10 was thinking very hard about this. On one side, he absolutely despised fraternizing with such filthy engines, and wanted very much to give that pompous blue oaf a piece of his mind, or else his claw. On the other, past memories of Thomas, that cheeky and putrid engine, the worst of them all by far… The diesel looked so disgusted for a moment that Gordon actually considered simply leaving while he could, never speaking of this encounter to anyone else.

Then: "I'm in."

* * *

><p>Thomas was shunting the last trains of the day into the yards at Knapford when Diesel 10 arrived. He didn't notice him at first – he was too busy taking some of his frustration out on the trucks, all of which were screaming and shouting at the irate tank engine.<p>

Then Thomas glanced up for a moment, and did a double take as he saw the fearsome figure on the edge of the yard. He hadn't seen him since he had had that nightmarish vision, and simply did not want anything more to do with him. Most engines had the same feeling, though for very different reasons than Thomas was using.

"Thomas, I need a word or two with you. Perhaps somewhere private – I can't let your… friends… see that I'm speaking to you, lest they get suspicious of the nature of my… activities."

Thomas was shocked; he didn't speak as Diesel 10 forced him into a corner of the yards, secluded and at a distance from the others. The diesel snapped his claw viciously in an attempt to convey the right message to the others, and shouted at the others to stay clear. Surprisingly, no one seemed to come to Thomas' aid – indeed, they had a bit of difficulty in hiding the smirks that had crept onto their faces, Gordon having the most difficulty.

"My dear engine, I know that I haven't been the most couth of engines towards you and your colleagues, but I implore you to listen as I tell you of… my heart."

The world had frozen. Thomas was standing completely still, utterly spooked. Perhaps he hadn't heard properly… yes, that was it; he had been threatened and simply hadn't heard correctly.

"My heart, Thomas. It beats for one and one alone. Do you know who it is?"

That put paid to that idea, and left Thomas hoping against hope that the diesel wasn't about to say…

"It's you, my love. You hold my heart, and I insist that you do not break it – you know what will happen otherwise…"

Thomas had begun to shake from outright fear. His nightmarish vision was coming true.

"I've tried to hold myself in, to follow the social conventions of natural relations, but I just can't do it anymore, do you hear? I simply can't…" Diesel 10 had moved in closer, his eyes blazing with flames of desire.

Thomas trembled, though this was from outright fright. This was too familiar for his liking, and he didn't like where this was going one bit.

"Do you know, my dear Thomas, how long I've wanted to do this? How long I've wanted to do this to you, with you, for you? I need you, my love, I need you."

The little blue engine had no voice; it had been taken from him, along with his freedom. Everything seemed to be moving at half speed. Thomas was simply terrified.

"Come to me, Thomas, come to me…" Diesel 10 growled in a seductive manner, moving closer and ever closer. His rough face was etched with desire, and his eyes – Thomas had to blink to be sure – were red with lust.

Thomas couldn't speak from shock and horror. His nightmare had come completely and utterly true, and he was powerless to stop it as he desperately craved to do. As Diesel 10 moved still closer, ready to finish his mission of passionate torture, Thomas was left to do the only thing he could do in his situation.

He fainted.

* * *

><p>Diesel 10 watched as Thomas fainted from shock, trembling with fear. As the tank engine fell, he waited with baited breath for any movement. A snap of his mighty claw proved that he was, indeed, out. Now, he could do what he wanted to do.<p>

"HA!"

The mighty diesel roared with peals of mirth, his laughter echoing across the yards. Gordon, who was nearby, had seen everything and was howling alongside his unlikely ally, the two united in their achieved goal to make the little blue puffball pay for his tormenting.

Eventually, the two stopped laughing long enough to speak plainly to each other. As ever, the menacing diesel was the first to speak: "This doesn't change anything. I still despise all of you tin kettles and wish you a slow scrapping… nevertheless, this was incredibly exhilarating. My compliments to your cunning wit – that was, indeed, well worth my… fraternization with the enemy, so to speak."

Gordon smirked. "You did wonderfully. Thanks again for your help – indeed, it was well worth bringing you in to see the look on Thomas' face…" The blue Pacific had to regain his composure slightly before continuing. "Too bad this won't change anything, but… you are entitled to your own opinions–"

"As are you entitled to yours. Farewell, sausage… you will never come near me again, lest it be on your own smoke box..."

Gordon gulped as Diesel 10's claw snapped viciously, making his point very clear. The diesel rolled out of the yards and back towards the smelters… though Gordon was sure that he heard a few chuckles from the retreating figure. Grinning to himself, he carefully moved Thomas to a siding to rest, after which he would assuredly help him become the butt of the jokes at Tidmouth Sheds for a very long time.

* * *

><p>Rosie carefully puffed up to Thomas whilst he was resting in the sidings. He had since woken from his fainting spell and had been informed by Gordon as to the exact events that transpired immediately before, at which point he had nearly passed out again. The big blue engine had had much amusement from the scene, and proceeded to inform Thomas that, while the teasing would subside – eventually – he would be well-advised to maintain some respect for the others in future.<p>

Now Thomas was feeling very embarrassed, choosing to wait in the sidings rather than return to Tidmouth Sheds. Though Rosie knew Thomas had thoroughly deserved his punishment she could not stand to see him in this state.

"Thomas? Are you okay?"

"No. I'm so sorry I've been acting so poorly lately, Rosie. I was absolutely horrid to you and you had every right to be angry with me. I–"

"-was afraid of your dream coming true," Rosie cut in. "You were scared that you were going to be making out with Diesel 10 instead of me, because you had had such a powerful dream and were too silly to realize that it was just that – a DREAM."

Thomas gulped. "Yes, I was."

"Then you know you deserved that, to be brought to your senses again."

"Yes, Rosie, I do."

"Good." Rosie moved close to Thomas, and whispered: "You were very mean to Gordon and the others, you know. You shouldn't be so rude to them – just try to be more patient and understanding with them next time. They were only being themselves, after all."

"Thanks, Rosie," Thomas sighed. "I've definitely learned my lesson – next time I feel that way, I'll stay clear of Gordon."

"Yes, you should," Rosie giggled, but then stopped short as Thomas gazed at her with an odd expression on his face.

"You told Gordon about my dream, didn't you? You told him everything. How could you?" Now Rosie recognized the expression on his face – hurt. She hadn't seen that face often, and even less as a result of her own actions.

"Thomas, I'm so sorry, it just slipped out as I was talking to him and–"

But the rest of her words were cut off, for Thomas had kissed her so delicately and yet deliberately that she had lost her train of thought. His lips were feather-light on hers, gently telling her that he forgave her without the need for communication. He was communicating much more than that already.

"Thank you for doing that, Rosie. I needed that, to see how silly I was."

"Then you forgive me, Thomas?" Rosie asked sweetly.

A deep and passionate kiss, lasting a few minutes and a lifetime, gave her the answer she needed. "Thank you, Thomas. I'll see you back at the sheds – you can finally get some sleep… if you want."

Thomas smirked mischievously as Rosie puffed away, and was about to follow her before stopping just outside of Tidmouth Sheds. He had only one thing left to do…

PEEP! PEEP! PEEEEEEEEEP!

Gordon jumped frantically, searching wildly for the source of the commotion. He was suitably less than impressed to see Thomas next to him, laughing heartily as he began to set off for home, feeling much better and more at ease than he had in a while.


End file.
